Antiaging Interventions: Aesthetic Medicine

Aging-related changes in appearance and body shape are treated in plastic surgery, dermatology, cosmetic surgery, and aesthetic dermatology. In this context, aesthetic medicine (cosmetic surgery, aesthetic dermatology), which is a self-pay medical service, includes two types of techniques: surgical procedures and non-surgical procedures. The former includes facelift surgery, eyelid surgery, facial bone contouring, fat injection, autologous hair transplantation, rhinoplasty, breast augmentation, breast lift/reduction, feminization breast surgery, abdominal wall formation, and liposuction. The latter includes injection treatments using botulinum toxin and hyaluronic acid preparations, facial rejuvenation treatments using chemical peels and lasers, and other treatments such as hair removal, nonsurgical fat removal slimming, sclerotherapy, and regenerative therapy. According to the annual national survey of aesthetic medicine conducted by the Japan Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (JSAPS), approximately two million aesthetic medical procedures were performed at aesthetic medical facilities nationwide in 2019. Of these, surgical treatments accounted for 13.1%, and nonsurgical treatments accounted for 86.9%. Aesthetic medicine is increasing in nonsurgical treatments in many countries, but in our country, the proportion is particularly high. Also, in our country, the face is the main treatment area, which is also a characteristic [1]. In aesthetic medicine, unlike general insurance medical treatment, there is a situation where many unapproved drugs, medical materials, and medical devices are used. These are used for patients by individual import by doctors, and some are used without knowing their effectiveness and safety. Many adverse events, such as granulomas after filler injection, have occurred, and have been a concern for professional societies and administrative agencies. In this context, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare’s scientific research project on aesthetic medicine was launched in the first year of Reiwa (2019). The purpose of this is to enhance the safety and improve the quality of aesthetic medicine by the five major societies related to aesthetic medicine jointly conducting a survey of complications related to aesthetic medicine and creating treatment guidelines. The aesthetic medicine treatment guidelines examined the effectiveness and safety of nonsurgical treatments, which are frequently performed in aesthetic medicine. The first year of Reiwa (2019) edition has already been published [2]. In this section, we will explain antiaging aesthetic medicine for the face and trunk according to the first year of Reiwa (2019) edition and the third year of Reiwa (2021) edition of the aesthetic medicine treatment guidelines.